Marble Falls High School names new head softball coach
Marble Falls High School named Clarissa Cardenas as its new head softball coach. She has served as the program’s assistant coach for the past two years. Cardenas and husband Eric recently celebrated the birth of their daughter, Camila. Courtesy photo
The Marble Falls High School softball team landed a new head coach, but it’s a familiar face.
The Marble Falls Independent School District Board of Trustees approved promoting assistant softball coach Clarissa Cardenas to the head spot during its June 16 meeting.
Cardenas had been the assistant coach for the past two years.
MFISD Athletics Director Rick Hoover said Cardenas, who is married to Marble Falls High School graduate Eric Cardenas, is the ideal hire.
“She has a wealth of experience on all levels,” he said. “She was a superstar high school (player), a superstar collegiate player, and a head coach for a (Class) 5A program.”
She previously was the head coach at Juarez-Lincoln High School in La Joya Independent School District and a three-year letterman in softball, basketball, and track and field for Sharyland High School. Cardenas was a first-team, all-district selection in softball for four years.
At Texas A&M International, a NCAA Division II program, she was a pitcher and set seven program records. She still ranks in the top 10 in 19 different program records after finishing her eligibility in 2011.
Hoover is also excited about her other strengths.
“She has the ability to coach girls,” he said. “She has the ability to communicate with girls and help them navigate through high school and college. Skills-wise, she’s not far removed from her playing days. She has a lot of grit, new ideas on training and drills.”
While winning is important, Hoover noted that Cardenas’ priority is to keep athletes engaged in the program and return it to being a consistent playoff contender.
“I want the girls to get back to loving the game of softball,” he said. “That’s something I believe has been lost for several years for whatever reason. (Cardenas) is the right person because she can connect with the girls.”